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NOTTINGHAM FOREST HISTORY
11 April, 1984

Hodge double beats Anderlecht

On this day in Nottingham Forest history in 1984 Forest beat Anderlecht in the UEFA Cup semi-final first leg.

Cup runs and campaigns

Reached final / semi-final / quarter-final
Goal hero, Steve Hodge.
Goal hero, Steve Hodge. Image: Blade0521 / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Nottingham Forest gave themselves a strong UEFA Cup semi-final lead by beating Anderlecht 2-0 at the City Ground.

Steve Hodge scored twice in the closing minutes, turning a tight European semi-final first leg into a result full of promise. His goals gave Forest a clear advantage and sent the City Ground crowd into the second leg with real belief.

Goal hero, Steve Hodge.
Goal hero, Steve Hodge. Image: Blade0521 / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

At the time, a 2-0 home win in a European semi-final felt like a result of genuine strength. Forest had done their work at home and appeared well placed to reach another continental final.

The match later became inseparable from the controversy of the second leg, but this first night should not be overlooked. Forest had beaten Anderlecht 2-0, Hodge had delivered the decisive moments, and the tie looked firmly in their hands.

The advantage did not survive the return match. Anderlecht won the second leg 3-0 in Belgium, eliminating Forest 3-2 on aggregate on a night that later became one of the most controversial in the club’s European history.

Sources

UEFA; English football records; Nottingham Forest European records

Forest timeline

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Notts County 0–2 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 3–0 Blackburn
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Vitória SC 1–1 Nottingham Forest
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Portimonense 1–2 Nottingham Forest Sporting CP 4–1 Nottingham Forest
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Udinese 1–0 Nottingham Forest Barcelona 1–0 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 2–1 Bayer Leverkusen
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Nottingham Forest 2–0 Stade Brestois 29
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Nottingham Forest 0–1 Leeds
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Nottingham Forest 0–0 Tottenham
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Aston Villa 1–2 Nottingham Forest
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Crystal Palace 14:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 16:30 Arsenal
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Ipswich 20:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 17:30 Manchester City
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Bournemouth 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 20:00 Chelsea
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Hull City 20:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Brighton
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Cup runs and campaigns